Automatic valves for liquid dispensing nozzles



Nov. 19, 1957 H. K. FLINCHBAUGH 54 AUTOMATIC VALVES FOR LI U D DISPENSING NOZZLES Filed July 15, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 52 FIG; IL

ATTORNEYS.

H- K. FLINCHBAUGH Nov. 19, 1957 AUTOMATIC VALVES FOR LIQUID DISPENSING NOZZLES Ffii 2w I 7 "0 0w o 21 I mm k I f7 h I EE 2 mi w I 2 k 2 PM l h m m UWI ml l I Mwwflil Filed July 15, 1955 INVENTORJ: HenryKFlzkc/zbauyfi I ATTORNEYS.

United States PatentO AUTOMATIC VALVES FOR LIQUID DISPENSING NOZZLES Henry K. Flinchbaugh, York, Pa Application July 13, 1955, Serial No. 521,740 2 Claims. (Cl. 141-215) This invention relates to automatic valves for liquid dispensing nozzles, and particularly to those valves which are actuated to automatically close a dispensing nozzle by the submergence of the discharge end thereof into the liquid which has been dispensed.

The chief object of this invention is to provide an automatic valve for a nozzle for dispensing liquids into a receptacle whereby, when the liquid being dispensed rises to sufficient height in the receptacle to submerge the discharge end of the nozzle, the valve will automatically close, thereby cutting off further discharge of the liquid.

A further object of this invention is to provide an automatic valve mechanism for a liquid dispensing nozzle comprising an internal nozzle through which the liquid to be dispensed flows, a valve adapted to seat against the internal nozzle when closed, thereby shutting off the flow of liquid, a discharge tube through which the liquid exits from the internal nozzle, and means for holding the valve open so long as atmospheric pressure or above is maintained below the Valve.

Another object of this invention is to provide a simple, efficient and positively operating automatic valve for a liquid dispensing nozzle which is of comparative simple structure, which is of instantaneous operation, and which utilizes a minimum of moving parts.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will appear from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side view of a liquid dispensing nozzle embodying this invention.

Fig. 2 is a fragmentary longitudinal cross section through the automatic valve and the discharge portions of the nozzle of Fig. 1, showing the automatic valve in open position.

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 2, but showing the automatic valve in closed position.

Fig. 4 is a sectional view taken on the line IVIV of Fig. 2.

5 is a sectional view taken on the line VV of Fig. Fig. 2.

Fig. 6 is a sectional view taken on the line VI-VI of Fig. 2.

Fig. 7 is a sectional view taken on the line VIIVII of Fig. 2.

Fig. 8 is a sectional view taken on the line VIII-VIII of Fig. 1. Fig. 9 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on the line IX-IX of Fig. 6.

Fig. 10 is a perspective view, partly in section, of the discharge end of the nozzle.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of the cylinder in which the stem and piston of the automatic valve moves.

Referring to Fig. 1 of the drawings, the dispensing nozzle shown therein may be conveniently subdivided, externally, into a hand valve 10, an automatic valve sleeve 11 or tubular prolongation and an outer nozzle 12. The hand valve 10 may be of any conventional type Well known in the art and a detailed discussion thereof is not necessary to the present invention. The sleeve ll is formed with a threaded end 13 for engagement with a tapped aperture in the hand valve 10, as best shown in Fig. 1.

Mounted internally of and coaxially to sleeve 11 is a cylinder 15 having radially spaced supporting elements 16, in the form of longitudinal segments, which define cylinder passages 17 through which the liquid to be dispensed flows, in a manner more fully explained below. The faces 18 of the cylinder supporting elements 16 are concentric with the axis of cylinder 15 and are formed to fit snugly against the inner wall of sleeve 11.

The cylinder 15 is formed with an internal chamber.

19, and a plug 20 is utilized in any convenient manner to close off the upper end thereof from the liquid stream.

A valve 22, of substantially frusto-conical configuration, is formed with a valve stem or rod 23 extending into the chamber 19 of the cylinder 15. At the opposite end of the valve stem 23 is mounted a piston 24in a convenient manner. A coil spring 25, surrounding valve stem 23, is mounted between piston 24 and the bottom of chamber 19 and operates to urge piston 24 upward, and hence valve 22 open, in the manner shown in Fig. 2. Spring 25 is of suflicient strength to hold valve 22 open only so long as atmospheric pressure (or.

above) is maintained below valve 22. If a vacuum is created below valve 22, the differential in pressure will overcome spring 25 and cause valve 22 to close.

Mounted immediately below cylinder 15, internally of sleeve 11 and coaxial thereto, is an inserted member forming a valve seat 26. Valve seat 26' comprises an annular ring, the periphery of which bears snugly against the inner wall of sleeve 11, and has its upper surface 27 beveled so as to conform to the configuration of valve 22. Valve seat 26 is further formed with an internal bore 29, which serves as an internal nozzle, and also has an annular sleeve-like element 28 integral with and dependent from its lower surface 31. i

Valve 22, when in closed position, rests: upon valve seat 26, as best shown in Fig. 3. When valve 22 is open, it provides, together with the upper surface 27 of valve seat 26, a constricted passageway intowhich the liquid flowing from cylinder passages 17 converges before passing into internal nozzle 29.

Outer nozzle 12 fits snugly into sleeve element 28 of 33 define air ducts 36 which are utilized for a purpose, presently to be explained. The faces 30 of the support ing elements 33 are concentric with the axis of outer nozzle 12 (see Fig. 7), and bear snugly against the in nor Wall thereof so as to hold discharge tube 32 securely in place. Below the supporting elements 33, discharge tube 32 is separated from outer nozzle 12 by' an annular air space 37.

As will be noted from Figs. 2 and 3, the internal di ameter of discharge tube 32 is larger than the diameter of internal nozzle 29. The upper end 34 of discharge.

tube 32 is spaced a short distance from the lower surface 31 of valve seat 26 so as to form an air chamber 35. Air chamber 35 is in communication with air ducts 36 formed between the supporting elements 33 of discharge tube 32, and air ducts 36, in turn, are in communication Patented. Nov. 19, 1957 3 with the annular air space 37 separating discharge tube 32' from outer nozzle 12' below separating elements 33.

Outer nozzle 12 and discharge tube 3.2 are coterminus. A. flat nozzle ring 38, shaped in the form of an offset bushing, is inserted between outer nozzle 12 and discharge tube 32 at, the distal ends thereof, as best shown in Fig. 10. Nozzle ring 38 serves to close oil? the lower end of air space 37' from the atmosphere, and is formed so that its bottom surface is coplanar with the coterminus end faces of outer nozzle 12 and discharge tube 32.

A plurality of air intake ports 39 are drilled in outer nozzle 12 immediately above the upper surface of nozzle ring 38 so as to permit air space 37 to be in communication with the atmosphere.

In order to prevent the formation of air pockets in the liquid as it flows past valve 22, ports 41 are drilled in the bottoms of cylinder supporting elements 15, as best shown in Figs. 6 and 9. Each port 41 is connected to one of the cylinder passages 17 by means of a single conduit 42. Accordingly, any air which may collect in the liquid below valve 22 will pass through ports 41 and conduits 42 and thence into the flowing liquid stream and be discharged therewith. By thus eliminating air pockets, the liquid flowing from passages 17 will, in passing over valve 22 and through internal nozzle 29, converge to form asingle solid stream.

In order to prevent fluid from collecting in cylinder chamber 19, arising from possible leakage around valve stem 23, a drainage conduit is provided which runs longitudinally of the nozzle from the top of cylinder chamber 19 to the distal end of outer nozzle 12. The drainage conduit consists of a passageway 43 in cylinder 15, a drainage tube 44 mounted between outer nozzle 12 and discharge tube 32 and a connecting tube 45 through which the drainage from passageway 43 is communicated to drainage tube 44. Connecting tube 45 has its upper end mounted in one of the supporting elements of cylinder 16 and its lower portion mounted in valve seat 26.

The distal end of discharge tube 44 is open to the atmosphere so that any leakage will be discharged with the liquid that. is being dispensed. Discharge tube 44 at its upper portion is recessed into outer nozzle 12 (see Fig. 7), but this recess is gradually reduced toward the distal end of outer nozzle 12 so that at the exit portion thereof it is eliminated entirely. As a result, the upper portion. of discharge tube 32 is concentric with outer nozzle 12, but the lower portion thereof is offset somewhat so as to no longer be coaxial therewith.

The operation of the above described automatic valve is as follows. When the hand valve is opened, the liquid to be dispensed flows from its source (not shown) through valve 10 into sleeve 11, thence through cylinder passages 17, over valve 22 and through the internal nozzle 29 from where it is discharged, through discharge tube 32, into the receptacle being filled (not shown). Because of the elimination of air pockets by means of ports 41 and conduits 42, the liquid flows from valve 22 through internal nozzle 29 in a single constricted stream.

As the liquid flows from internal nozzle 29 into the larger cross section of internal discharge tube 32, it will tend to dilate and in so doing will draw air from air chamber 35. The air thus picked up will be carried along and discharged with the liquid stream. Thus, the flow of the liquid into discharge tube 32 creates a circulation of air from the atmosphere through ports 39, air space 37, air ducts 36 and air chamber 35. As a result, atmospheric pressure or above is maintained below valve 22 so long as ports 39 remain open.

When the liquid in the receptacle being filled rises to a height sutlicient to submerge ports 39, the circulation of air through the internal discharge tube 32 is cut oil. Since the discharging liquid carries off the remaining air in the nozzle, a vacuum is created below valve 22 which overcomes the force of spring 25 and causes valve 22 to drop onto surface 27 of valve seat 26, thereby closing off the flow of liquid. See Fig. 3.

Valve 22 will remain in closed position so long as the liquid is backed up by pump or gravity pressure sufficiently to overcome the force of valve spring 25. When this liquid pressure is reducedby closing the secondary or manual valve, spring 25 will immediately urge valve 22 to its normally open position.

In forming air intake ports 39 in the distal end of outer nozzle 12, it is preferable to have several of them of relatively small diameter, so that smaller volumes of liquid will operate to close oil these ports, thereby making the valve-closing action highly sensitive. It is thus possible, by varying the number and diameter of the air intake ports, to make the automatic valve described herein so sensitive that its closing action will occur when the ports 39 are submerged in the foam which often exists due to the agitation of the liquid in the receptacle being filled.

While a preferred embodiment of my invention has been particularly described and illustrated, it is to be understood that various modifications and changes in the shape, proportion and arrangement of the parts may be made without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a liquid dispensing nozzle, a tubular prolongation at the outlet of the nozzle; a cylinder fitted into the upper part of the tubular prolongation and formed with circumferentially-spaced longitudinal grooves externally thereof to serve as flow passages for the liquid, said cylinder being closed at the top; a piston and rod within the cylinder whereof the rod passes through the bottom of the cylinder and is provided at its distal end with a valve closure head; an axially ported insert fitted into the tubular prolongation below the cylinder and provided at its top end with a valve seat; a spring in compression between the piston and the bottom of the cylinder bore for normally maintaining the closure head raised from the seat of the ported insert; a hollow walled extension discharge tube engaged into a counterbore in the bottom end of the ported insert, the inner wall of said tube terminating short of the bottom of the counterbore,

and the interval between the walls of the tube being closed at the bottom except for communication with the exterior by way of a lateral aperture immediately above said bottom; and an eccentrically disposed liquid drainage passage extending up from the annular hollow of the discharge tube, through the ported insert, and through the wall of the cylinder between a pair of adjacent longitudinal grooves of the latter and communicating laterally with the bore of the cylinder above the piston.

2. A liquid dispensing nozzle according to claim 1, wherein additional ducts extend up through the wall of the cylinder from the bottom in the intervals between adjacent grooves thereof and open laterally into said grooves.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,111,852 Flinchbaugh Mar. 22, 1938 2,330,704 Grise Sept. 28, 1943 2,529,936 Grise Nov. 14, 1950 2,702,659 Henry Feb. 22, 1955 

